ASTANA – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Almaty Electric Stations, an energy-producing organization owned by the Samruk Energy power holding, signed a loan agreement worth 98 billion tenge ($219.2 million) to finance the modernization of the Almaty Combined Heat and Power Plant-2 (CHP-2), the holding’s press service announced on June 9.
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According to Yerlan Kirkinbayev, chairman of the Almaty Electric Stations, the loan agreement resolves issues related to the financing of the project aimed at switching from coal to natural gas.
The project to modernize and convert the Almaty CHP-2 to gas is being implemented with the support of the Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund, which signed a guarantee agreement with the ADB to minimize risks and improve the conditions for lending.
The ADB became the third financial partner for the Almaty Electric Stations to conclude the loan agreement within the project. Previously, relevant agreements to finance the construction of a new gas station in Almaty at the site next to the old CHP-2 were signed with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Development Bank of Kazakhstan (DBK).
Earlier, a consortium of three large Chinese companies that is engaged in energy projects was selected as a contractor for the construction of a new gas turbine CHP plant, following a two-stage open tender in accordance with EBRD’s international standards and rules.
In late May, the Almaty Electric Stations signed an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract with the tender’s winner for the implementation of a full cycle of work, including design, supply of equipment, construction, installation and commissioning.
The Almaty Electric Stations’ project portfolio also includes the construction of a combined-cycle gas plant with a capacity of 545 megawatts at the Almaty CHP-3 and the reconstruction of the Almaty CHP-1, building a 250-megawatt combined-cycle plant.
The organization has started developing projects to modernize the Kapshagai hydroelectric power plant (HPP) with the construction of a counter-regulator on the Ili River and the reconstruction of the Cascade HPP.
These projects will significantly improve the air basin of Almaty and the Almaty agglomeration, ensure sustainable heat and energy supply, as well as the region’s economic development.
“Ultimately, the Almaty Electric Stations will become one of the country’s largest energy companies, completely reoriented to green energy,” reads the press statement.
